Before the start of Euro 2008, nobody thought Valencia’s David Villa would be in with a sniff. How wrong they were. After two matches, the Spanish star lies clear as the tournament’s leading goalscorer with 4 goals. Goals come with praise, and with praise comes speculation. Just about every side worthy of bidding for Villa seems to be in the chase, but Chelsea’s attempts to lure him from Valencia seem to be in vain.
The Sun reports that Roman Abramovich wants to fund a £60M bumper deal for Fernando Torres and Villa. That just won’t happen – for one, Torres will not leave Liverpool for at least 5 years (Premier League / European success is paramount) and Villa claims he wants to stay in Spain.
But the up-for-sale striker said he had a lot of friends in the Liverpool squad. Perhaps not Juventus-bound Xabi Alonso, but Spanish striking partner Fernando Torres and Alvaro Arbeloa.
In the rest periods before the impending big games at Euro 2008, Torres must be telling Villa what it is like to play in England. It is a challenge which appeals to Villa, but the biggest challenge may be raising the money to snatch him from Real’s or Barca’s grasp.
Many Premier League players use European competition as a way of networking and trying to lure their fellow countrymen to join them in England. With a blossoming relationship at international level, Torres could be the key in Villa’s switch to Anfield.
With the deadly duo up front next season, perhaps this could be Liverpool’s year…but where have we heard that before?